Arise and Believe
John 20:19-31
April 14, 15, 2007

Again, welcome to worship! I want to take just a moment to look both ways before crossing over into the sermon. First, I want to look back and express my deepest gratitude to the staff and members and friends of the church family. Many, many people helped to make our first Holy Week services in the new sanctuary so meaningful and memorable. There is always some concern about church attendance when Easter and spring break begin on the same weekend! But even though we sent a grand group of folks away from Beargrass as "missionaries"-especially to destinations like Florida-we had over 1300 people present for last weekend's services! The music was moving and inspiring. We celebrated baptisms and baby dedications and decisions for discipleship. Thanks be to God-especially for giving us a reason to rejoice because of Jesus' resurrection!

I would also like to "set the table" for worship today and in the coming weeks. Our theme for the year has been "All Things New," which has been very appropriate since we have moved into our new facilities and are exploring new areas for ministry. For each of the seasons of this church year, I have been inviting you to reflect upon variations of the theme. For the Easter season, I would like us to consider a phrase that we often proclaim as people emerge from the waters of baptism: "Arise and walk in the newness of life!" We will be examining a number of passages from the Gospel of John during the next two months. The scripture passages address different aspects of discipleship. They help us respond to questions like these: What does it mean to walk in the newness of life? What does it mean for us to be followers of Jesus, disciples of Christ? What does it mean to be "people of the resurrection?" The suggested lectionary texts for the Gospel of John highlight helpful aspects of discipleship. The sermon titles will include: "Arise and Believe, Arise and Follow, Arise and Listen, Arise and Love One Another, Arise and Be United." As always, I encourage you to read and reflect upon these passages before you come to worship during the Easter season.

NOW THAT WE HAVE LOOKED BOTH WAYS, I THINK IT IS SAFE TO CROSS INTO THE SERMON! You may have heard this story-either way, please be patient-the first part of it is a little rough. Some years ago a judge in Europe had a terrible accident. He was standing in a bathtub full of water. He reached up to turn on a light-and was electrocuted. The judge's poor wife was horrified to find him body sprawled out on the bathroom floor. The authorities arrived and the judge was deemed to be dead as a doornail! His body was placed in a preparation room under a crypt in the town cemetery for 24 hours before burial. Here's where it gets interesting! In the middle of the night, the judge woke up! He looked around realized where he was. He became extremely excited and rushed over to the guard. You can imagine how the guard reacted! He was terrified and high-tailed it out of there! Fortunately, the guard returned with a friend, and they released the newly-revived judge. The judge's first thought was to phone his wife and reassure her that he really wasn't dead. Unfortunately, he got no farther than, "Honey... it's me." She screamed and fainted. So, the judge had to consider another course of action. He decided to find some of his friends. He went to their homes-but because they all had heard the news-they slammed their doors. They thought they'd seen a ghost! Finally, in desperation, he contacted a colleague in another city. The man hadn't heard about his death. That person was finally able to convince the judge's family and friends that he was really alive!

THE STORY HAS SOME INTERESTING PARALLELS WITH THE PASSAGE WE HAVE HEARD FROM THE GOSPEL OF JOHN. They are both shocking! Pun intended! And they both describe a group of people trying to convince another that someone who has been dead is alive! What do we know about the group of disciples who are gathered behind closed doors on that first Easter evening? In some ways, we know very little. One of the things we discussed in the "Introduction to the Bible" class that I taught recently is how little the Gospels tell us about the disciples. We have little or no information about their age, their height or weight, their hair or eye color, their favorite food or sport or TV show-none of that! Oh, we can make some guesses and assumptions based on some of their previous professions… But for the most part, we know very little-which is kind of surprising-given the important role they played in Jesus' life and ministry.

On the other hand, some of them have been labeled with certain descriptions that have stuck with them through the centuries. For instance, if I mention Judas, what word comes to mind? If I mention Simon Peter, what word comes to mind? Some of you may take the "low road" and say, "Denier." Others may take the "high road" and say, "Rock." If I were to mention James and John, some of you might say, "Sons of Thunder," -and that doesn't refer to a Kentucky Derby duo! If I were to mention Andrew, some of you would say, "Evangelist." The stories we remember about Andrew portray him bringing others to Jesus. The symbol of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has the cross of St. Andrew on it-a reminder of our call to be evangelists and share the Good News of God's love.

And of course, besides Judas, there was only one other disciple missing from the room that first Easter evening. And this one is easy. I would guess that even people who aren't smarter than 5th graders would get this one! I would expect that if Jay Leno went "Jay Walking" and asked folks who have never read the Bible or been to church, they would answer correctly because it has become such a cliché in our culture. Fill in the blank… "Doubting….." Isn't this odd? In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, we are told next to nothing about Thomas. But in John's Gospel, Thomas takes on a distinct persona. Even so, there are still only about 150 words about him-and not all of them are negative. When Jesus "turns his face toward Jerusalem," the disciples think that it will be certain death for all of them. Surprisingly, it is Thomas who says: "Then let us go so that we may die with him!" That's a pretty powerful proclamation! And yet, not many of us remember him for that. Most of us also forget that when Thomas is given a second chance a week later, his confession is uttered with conviction: "My Lord and my God!" Are these the words of a doubter?

AND WHAT'S WRONG WITH A LITTLE DOUBT, ANYWAY? We want proof! The world may be going down the drain because of global warming and wars and disease and terrorism and genocide-but what was one of the major headlines in the news last week? We've got proof! We have DNA evidence! We can finally sleep-we know the father of Anna Nicole's baby!

Shortly before Easter, another story about another tomb is in the news! Every time archaeologists discover another inscription referring to King David, Pontius Pilate, or some other biblical figure, folks go crazy! The latest claims have to do with the alleged tomb of Jesus-and Dr. Hull will clear all that up for you in the next couple of weeks! But we want proof! We want to be able to say, "Here it is!" Here is proof that the stuff in the Bible really happened! We want to see and touch and taste and hear and know!

But what's wrong with a little doubt, anyway? I appreciate George Carlin's perspective in the latest Reader's Digest. He said, "I'm not an atheist; I'm not an agnostic." "I'm an acrostic." "Everything puzzles me!"

What's wrong with a little doubt? I firmly believe that if we are to grow spiritually, there will be healthy tension between doubt and faith. If we think we have all the answer, we will stop asking questions. When we stop asking questions, we will cease to grow in our faith. In fact, some of the most passionate believers, some of the most fervent followers, some of the most dynamic of Jesus' disciples-have also been the biggest doubters.

Some of you recall words like those of Francis Bacon. "If we begin in certainties, we shall end in doubts." "But if we will be content to begin with doubts, we shall end in certainties." Some of you remember Frederick Buechner's vivid imagery. He said, "Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you don't have any doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep." "Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith-they keep us awake and moving." And one of the staunchest defenders of the faith that ever lived, one who got things rockin' and rollin' with the Protestant Reformation-recognized the power and pull of what he called "faith's sister." Prepare yourself-these are strong words! Martin Luther wrote: "Nobody in this life is nearer to God than those who hate and deny God, and God has no more pleasing, no dearer children than these."

Religious historian, Will Herberg, tries to unpack what Luther is saying. "Luther's statement, however shocking and extreme, points to a profound truth. "Unless God matters infinitely, God does not matter at all." "There is something absolute about faith which demands everything or nothing." "Faith is not just one more interest or attachment in life, side by side with other interests or attachments." "Passionate unbelievers who deny God may be all wrong in their ideas-but at least they take God seriously." "These kinds of believers are no mere unbelievers; they are rather anti-believers whose life is a wrestling with God." "They do not take God for granted-and for that reason, Luther insists, they are near and dear to God."

So, go ahead and doubt; but go ahead and believe. Jesus seems to let us know that faith is a blessing and a gift. He says to "Believing Thomas," who is standing right in front of him: "Blessed are those who have not seen-and yet have come to believe." That would include you and me… And these words have been written… And this story has been told… So that we may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that believing… We may have life in his name.